The sector is rapidly flourishing and evolving, and I always keep my eyes out for projects that show real potential, and one in particular that I have been following closely is the BAT project.
‘BAT’ stands for Basic Attention and is the native of the . This web browser was built on the Chromium platform, and it has a UI (User Interface) similar to that of Chrome — although that’s where the similarities end. Unlike Chrome, Brave doesn’t track users, and powerful ad-blocking features are offered as standard. These features are long-desired and make it easy for users to totally avoid those pesky ads. Surprisingly, though, this isn’t the main reason people are so excited about this new browser. That excitement is reserved for a novel feature that is only possible thanks to crypto: Brave pays users to view ads.
Getting Paid in BAT
When you use Brave, you have two options — keep adblocker switched on and avoid any ads while you browse, or (drum roll, please) you can switch adblocker off, view the ads, and get paid for it! Previously, this feature was only available on the PC and Mac versions of the browser, however, Brave has that users will be able to earn those sweet BAT through the Android version of the browser too. And Brave giving away $5 of BAT to users who download the browser now.
Viewing ads for profit is quite the novel idea, so it’s likely going to take some time to get off the ground. Brandon Eich, the CEO of Brave Browser, the average user can expect to earn about $70 in 2019 by watching advertisements and that $70 will be paid in BAT, directly deposited into the user’s in-browser . I realize that, at first glance, this doesn’t seem like much money. However, Eich believes that by 2020 the number will be over $200 a year — a nice chunk of change just for viewing ads.
Spending BAT
BAT is an ERC20, that makes it easy to convert BAT into other types of crypto, you can easily spend it without doing so. Not to mention, a recent partnership has made BAT one of the most widely accepted coins in the entire ecosystem.
Said partnership is with the , a large advertising platform. This arrangement means that BAT holders redeem their coins for gift certificates and other discounts at over 250,000 retail outlets. Don’t think these are just small or local retailers either, you can get these benefits with the big like Starbucks, Apple, Uber, and Amazon, among many others.
Partnerships like these are desperately needed in the ecosystem, as they are another stepping stone towards real-world . The market cap did reach nearly a trillion dollars in 2017. However, I believe that more coins like BAT are needed if crypto intends to break that previous high.
Tipping BAT
In addition to the previously outlined benefits and uses, BAT can also be used to tip content creators. A content creator, for example, Ivan on Tech, can set up a BAT and receive tips from users who appreciate and want to support their work. While the tipping system has yet to be widely implemented, in the future, it may well compete with such well-known platforms as Patreon.
If a content creator were to be able to generate a stable income from these tips, that would give them not only flexibility in the content they produce, but it may also free them from the constraints of requiring advertising for revenue — something watchers/readers will also benefit from. While widespread of BAT tipping may be years away, getting paid to view ads is happening now, and BAT is establishing itself as a versatile with real-world application. Needless to say, this is a project I am keeping my eye on & of course hodling a bag, and I’m very optimistic about the path it will take in the future.
Published at Sun, 21 Apr 2019 05:36:00 +0000
